Discussing the design of quests in The Elder Scrolls Online

The Elder Scrolls Online has certain player expectations going in, such as an expectation of the sort of quest structure you usually find in the series. More specifically, it’s the sort of structure in which you start off on some simple quest and wind up wandering off into some completely unrelated point of interest. A recent interview with creative director Paul Sage and lead content designer Rich Lambert reveals that the team is aiming for just that sort of model in the game.

As Lambert explains, the team wants to move away from the usual hub design in favor of several points of interest, each of which provides a little snippet of content and story. The points aren’t meant to be structured as an A-to-B affair; instead, you have several points of interest in a given region which build into a large overarching story. Take a look at the full interview for more information about how quests will work in the game and how players will be guided through objectives as they play.

comments

mysecretid

I’m still not convinced this will be anything more than an Elder Scrolls game in name only.

I’m not trying to be nasty, or to hate, but it really sounds (so far) like this game is intended to be a standard-ish themepark fantasy MMORPG set in the Elder Scrolls world — but without any of the gameplay elements which make games like Skyrim so much fun to play.

If so, what’s the special appeal here which will set it apart, and make it worth bumping a game I’m already playing to make room for this? What am I missing? Anybody?

blackcat7k

I’m hearing the word “credit” and I want some more clarification on that if it only refers to sharing kill credit that’s fine. I just hope they don’t give out experience points for finishing the quests.

That’s one of the main things that sets Elder Scrolls from different RPG systems. Getting character progression by successfully using your skills instead